Jan. 21, 1974A four-day strike by 2,000 postal workers at the New Jersey Bulk and Foreign Mail Center in Jersey City began on this date. The “Battle of the Bulk” was caused by postal management’s unilateral changes in workers’ hours and working conditions. The wildcat strike was led by a group of young workers who identified themselves as “The Outlaws”. A federal judge ruled in the union’s favor, directing management to settle the issue through binding arbitration.~ Union Communication Services

Teamsters! This really IS the time for actionJune 3, 2015 | The public is starting to pay more attention to the negotiated-in-secret TPP deal and what its passage will mean for the nation. Fast Track proponents are trying to move quickly, pushing to bring the legislation for the job-killing TPP to a vote in the house. Granting a Fast Track rubber-stamp for the TPP would only accelerate a global race to the bottom in wages and working conditions that nobody wins – except, of course, for big transnational corporations that are eager to exploit labor abuses abroad to pad their obscene profits. But we can win this fight. Literally thousands of organizations – representing the environmental, family farm, civil rights, consumer, LGBT, student and other movements – have united with labor in saying NO to Fast Track. We need your voice, too. Make the call to your Representative now at 888-979-9806 and urge them to vote NO on Fast Track. Then send an email too.larger, heavier trucks. Full story…

Hoffa: TAA will offer little help to workers hit hard by tradeJune 10, 2015 | For years, the Teamsters have been strong supporters of Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) legislative efforts that have offered support to thousands of workers who have lost jobs due to bad trade deals. But not this time…

Hoffa: Overworking truckers is dangerousJune 10, 2015 |Highways across Michigan and the U.S. have become increasingly dangerous for motorists. And that will only get worse if Congress approves a transportation spending bill that effectively keeps the suspension of rules in place that allow truck driver to work longer hours, that permits larger double-trailers and that prevents the U.S. Department of Transportation from raising minimum insurance standards that have been frozen on place for three decades. The fate of those provisions, tucked inside a $55 billion federal transportation spending bill, is now being considered on Capitol Hill. Full story…

Former Sparrows Point steelworker speaks out on impact of failed trade policiesJune 11, 2015 |This new ad from the AFL-CIO and USW highlights how the loss of manufacturing jobs due to bad trade policies has hit manufacturing workers like former Sparrows Point craneworker, Mike Lewis, especially hard.

Hoffa applauds trade package vote but warns fight isn't over yetJune 15, 2015 |In a press release issued last week, General President Hoffa said that in rejecting the Trade Adjustment Assistance portion of the trade package, "a resounding bipartisan majority of lawmakers agreed that workers don't want to be retrained for a new career – they want to keep the good middle-class jobs they have now." However, the battle didn't end Friday. "The Teamsters and others who stand with American families must remain resolute. Corporate cronies are likely to try to get TAA and fast track through the house again" this week. Workers voices' need to continue to be heard on Capitol Hill. Read more at teamster.org. Related: Liberals deal Obama a stunning blow on trade -- but one more showdown awaits.

Teamsters endorse pension protection billJune 18, 2015 |The IBT issued its support today for new legislation that will protect earned pension benefits for retirees and boost multi-employer pension plans for workers and participating employers.The “Keep our Pension Promises Act,” sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), will roll back provisions slipped into the fiscal 2015 spending bill approved by Congress last year that made earned pensions benefits vulnerable to cuts. The measure would restore anti-cutback rules so that recipients in financially troubled multi-employer pension plans will be protected from having their benefits cut. Continued…

House panel approves union-related bills on straight party-line vote June 24, 2015 | A state House committee passed a pair of bills Tuesday that Republicans say are aimed at increased government transparency, but Democrats say they are anti-union and aimed at undermining the powers of a newly elected Democratic governor. The legislation would require the state Independent Fiscal Office to analyze the cost of any collective bargaining agreement proposed for workers under the governor’s jurisdiction. The other bill would require public employers to post proposed collective bargaining agreements online at least two weeks before the signing of the contracts. Full story ….